The Nursery

This nursery was a labor of love.  As in I loved it but it was a lot of work.  As with most momma's on a budget, I did everything myself (slash with my mom's help)(and sisters' advice).  I had very specific ideas about what I wanted this room to look like, but very little idea where to find what I wanted!  (and I apologize for the poor quality of the photos - this room has very little natural light thanks to a southeast facing window and a dark curtain.  Perfect for a napping child, not so great for the photography!)

Furniture - I wanted dark wood... I LOVE white, but its not super gender neutral. (I guess it can be - but white furniture with navy & white bedding felt very nautical, not the direction I wanted)  I did a lot of research, price comparing, etc. and found this at Burlington Baby Depot.  It's highly rated by Consumer Reports for safety, it was a pretty, dark wood, solid construction, and had a coordinating wide, low dresser that I could make into our changing table (one of my must-haves).  The recliner is a craigslist find from a lovely family in Allen who bought it when their daughter was born!  I have slept in it, and it was much better than I would have slept in a non-reclining glider.

Textiles - I searched and searched for bedding I liked, but I was not able to find what I was looking for (at least for a decent price).  I searched and search fabric stores, but still couldn't find what I wanted, so I ordered fabric online.  It arrived, minus the curtain fabric which was backordered, so my my mom and I made the bedding before school started.  The curtain fabric arrived the day he was born, and we didn't make the curtain until he was about a month old, which was no big deal since at that point he had never slept in his room! (And the perfectly coordinating green crib sheet is from his Oklahoma City cousins!) The rug I found on rugsusa.com, and had timing issues thanks to it constantly being out of stock in the size I needed.  I finally managed to get it during one of their big sales, and it arrived the week before he was born, 3 weeks ahead of schedule!  And its perfect!

 

Knick-knacks - hanging toy storage from Ikea.  On his dresser is a lamp from Aunt Kara, a photo from our maternity session, and two model cars.  A blue Shelby Cobra (his Papa's dream car) and an orange Chevy Bel Air (a car his Papi actually had).  On the shelf next to the curtain is a silver duck (mine) and a block (Aunt Kara's I think), a glass clown that was his Papa's when he was little, and some word art found on Pinterest!

"Art" - Carter letters above the door (made by me) and collage above the crib with images that are special to us (and don't worry, they are hanging on nails, with 3m velcro strips for reinforcement.  A earthquake could bring the house down and those guys will still be stuck to that wall!)  That collage was the bane of my existence for awhile, and the reason his nursery wasn't finished finished until like last week.  I started with just the round plate and the bible verse with the signed mat from my baby shower, and had to select the images I wanted, decide what size I wanted them to be, find the rest of the frames in dark brown in the correct sizes and coordinating styles, and then send the images to kinkos for printing.  And then frame and hang them all (with my tape measure, pencil, and level, after first creating the design on the floor, because I'm OCD and thanks to my dad I don't hang anything on the wall without it being flawless).

Images from L to R, top to bottom: Chili's logo, polo player, "C is for Carter" print, Batman, Winnie the Pooh quote, birth stats, his hospital bracelet, Dallas Cowboys, special Bible verse plate from Miss Laura, picture of his two favorite people, Texas, Bible verse with signed mat from baby shower, RCA dog (who Sadie resembles), Winnie the Pooh quote.

 

Reading nook - as a teacher, but more importantly a life-long book worm, I wanted to have a special place for reading.  I saw the Ikea spice rack bookshelf idea on Pinterest, and decided to go with it, and I love how they turned out.  He actually has quite a bit more books than fit on the shelves, so we have some on the shelves, in that basket, downstairs, and in the other bedroom.  My mom found the Eric Carle alphabet print, which I love, and is perfect because those are currently his favorite books (simple, bold pictures and sing songy words are right up his alley)! 

I'm completely in love with it!  Sadie too, as you can see she already has her "spot" where she hangs out while we change him or read!  Every single thing was carefully considered and chosen by me, (with advice from my mom and sisters), and is special to us!  And Lord willing when we get a little girl, I will change the green to pink and change out some of the accessories and we'll be good to go.  I have now done every room in our house besides the extra bedroom (aka Carter's future big boy room) and the dining room, and the dining room is getting a makeover asap (like this weekend?!).  Somehow there isn't enough room for the gear/toys we've already acquired for him, so the dining room we never use is going to be the play room.  As much as it feels weird to do, I really want all the toys in one location, and there just isn't enough room in his room or the living room.  Next house we'll have both, but for now this plan will do fine! (How did I fill up this more than big enough house with stuff?)(but I digress, my shopping addiction and hoarding problem is a whole other blog topic!) =)

I think I made my oldest friend/freshman roommate/interior designer extraordinaire proud!  Melis - don't tell me if not! ;)